Snowpack increased recently in all Idaho basins, according to the March 1 water supply outlook report that USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service released March 7.

“A wet, cold February brought ample snow to the region, which improved the snowpack in all basins across Idaho after a very dry January,” NRCS Idaho water supply specialist Erin Whorton said in a news release.

“Snowpack now ranges between 84-140% of normal” as of March 1.

The north region, and the Wood and Lost river basins in the central mountains except for Big Wood, continue to experience drought. Wet conditions are needed in March to pull these areas out of drought, though “fortunately, the one-month outlook predicts wetter-than-normal conditions across Idaho,” according to the release.

A warm, dry start to the Oct. 1 water year left soils dry in many locations, NRCS hydrologists reported earlier.

As of March 1, analyses “indicate drier than normal conditions exist in the Salmon, Wood, Lost and Upper Snake river basins,” according to the March 1 report. Soil moisture conditions “have improved significantly in western Idaho and along the Snake River Plain.”

Dry soils soak up some runoff on its way to rivers and reservoirs.

“If the snowpack melts quickly this spring, we’ll get increased runoff efficiency and more runoff into the reservoirs, which would boost water supply,” Whorton told Capital Press.

Snowpack typically peaks around April 14 in the Upper Snake River Basin, March 30 in the Big Wood, April 5 in the Boise and March 28 in the Weiser River basin, she said. After “peak snowpack,” widespread melting occurs.

In the central mountains, Big Wood snowpack exceeded its 30-year median peak a month ahead of schedule, according to the report.

Forecasts call for streamflow that is near or above normal across the state except in the northern panhandle.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Climate Prediction Center expects conditions to be cooler and wetter than normal through the middle of March, according to the NRCS report. CPC’s one-month outlook indicates wetter-than-normal conditions are likely across the state, with below normal temperatures in the west.

About 44% of land in the state was abnormally dry or in drought as of the March 1 NRCS report. Conditions improved south of Idaho County, which is in the north-central region, thanks to above-normal precipitation in February.

CPC’s seasonal drought outlook forecasts drought conditions will persist in and around Lemhi County, in the Salmon River basin, over the next three months.

Upper Snake basin reservoir system storage was 77% of capacity and 111% of normal as of March 1, according to the NRCS report.

A forecast by NRCS calls for 103% of normal runoff during the primary April-July period at the Heise gauge — in the Upper Snake basin near Idaho Falls — up from 77% a month ago.

Only the Big Lost and Little Lost river basins, in the central mountains, show some potential for a shortage of irrigation water, according to the NRCS Surface Water Supply Index as of March 1. The potential is slight, similar to 2016.

The index combines pre-runoff reservoir volume with forecasts for spring and summer streamflow to predict surface water availability.